A new beginning
by leliana McKay
Summary: Post New Caprica evacuation, Laura is back to the Presidency and she and the Admiral must re-evaluate their relationship. A Roslin/Adama shippy story.


**A new beginning.**

**By Leliana McKay**

Summary: Post New Caprica evacuation, Laura is back to the Presidency and she and the Admiral must re-evaluate their relationship.

Pairing: Laura Roslin/ William Adama (as usual!)

Spoilers: season three, up to Collaborators.

Disclaimers: No copyright infringement intended. Nothing belongs to me! I write for fun!

Special Thanks to my amazing beta...Ellymelly!

* * *

Laura felt relieved. 

Back on Colonial One life seemed to have regained a semblance of normality and being stuck on her ship was actually refreshing, even though Baltar's decorating taste sometimes gave her headaches, starting with his own self portrait...

On New Caprica, Laura had had a lot of fresh air, rain, trees, everything that the people needed to feel alive again. A sense of freedom had grown rapidly among the population; and the society was flourishing thanks to the general morale boost. Nevertheless, her fears that the settlement would lead to their downfall had been confirmed as time passed.

First, people had started to develop some common diseases and soon those epidemics began to grow in number resulting in many casualties. Malnutrition spread after vermin infested the crops leaving the settlement with an incoherent assortment of food, neither filling nor enjoyable. Finally, it was the weather and some very difficult working conditions left unhandled by Baltar that managed to break the general happiness. Then... the Cylons came, destroying what Baltar had created of a society, replacing it with a regime of terror.

These events, as tragic as they might be, were all part of a cycle and Laura had known that the prophecies were right. It all had happened before and it would happen again. She knew they would be rescued but at what cost? She also knew they would survive but her confidence in her own leadership was starting to crumble.

The newly reinstated President sat behind her desk, deep in thought. As President, she would now be back to more boring tasks. The people who had come to be her friends would be either on the Galactica or some other ship in the fleet. She would be alone again, with the responsibility of preserving the Human race on her shoulders.

Laura wasn't sure if she could do it. Forming the resistance and having to coordinate the rescue from New Caprica had been straining. Dealing with the captures of their own men, the torture... The sacrifices made had shaken her badly. She felt weak, she needed to talk to someone but didn't know who. The only person she trusted completely had become a stranger.

Willian Adama, Admiral of the Fleet, had changed and she felt like she didn't know him anymore.

She remembered the day she finally met him on the Galactica, two days after the rescue from _that_ planet. She had watched him in the CIC, beaming inside. Thinking she wished she could run to him and hug him for saving them. 'He had come back for them!' that she had never doubted.

She had smiled at him and had started to walk towards him but what she got in return was a cold glare, freezing her on the spot and a formal, "Mrs Roslin".

Laura knew she lost her confidence that day. Despite all her efforts to talk to Bill, he had ignored her, only nodding at her for politeness.

Even yesterday, after the swearing in and her general pardon to the Fleet, he had given her the cold shoulder. She couldn't help feeling lost: '_What have I done? Is it something I said?_ _He clearly started the applause but yet he left without a word_.' Secretly, Laura thought it had to do with Tom Zarek, her vice president. Bill did not seem to understand that to have the Presidency back she needed to compromise. _Was it because of Zarek's action and the Circle?_

What she didn't know was that it wasn't her fault, at least not entirely. The Admiral was only angry with himself, somehow punishing himself for his own mistakes. He had no idea what damage he was causing.

Laura was lost, her self-destruct relationship with Adama was her only preoccupation these days. The President was daydreaming, lost in thoughts, sometimes crying for no reasons. Tory had been worried about her and suggested she went to see Doctor Cottle.

Everything that had happened as she moved down on New Caprica came back to her like a maelstrom. She had lost Bill's trust then, and her morality had been questioned. At that time, she just could not bear his look of utter disbelief at her actions, a look that turned to pity when she left for the planet ground.

On his side Bill, had had is judgement about Laura shattered when she tried to steal that election. He had been angry with himself for not seeing what she really was capable to do. He was too busy with the new President's orders to actually talk to the woman. Contrary to what Laura might have thought when she left for New Caprica, Bill had come to terms with the issue. He had moved, accepted the fact that Laura could make mistakes and that he should forgive her.

His real problem at that time had been the everyday life on a Battlestar. Peace was a boring process. He slowly watched his own people dissert him. He withdrew further from this new life, destined never to leave the Galactica.

Time passed. He saw his son Lee, now a joke of a pilot, getting fatter every day. The Battlestars became a retirement house where people ate, slept and tried to do something with their spare time. The military had become useless.

The Cylons came and the Battlestars left, leaving New Caprica defenceless. When Bill finally ordered the rescue four months later, he was ready for a suicide mission. Bitter with life, full of regrets, anger and sorrow, a mix of emotions so dangerous that he truly wasn't sure how he had managed to pull this one out.

But they did it. He survived, she did too. However, he still could not face her. He had lost hope for a moment, he had given up, thought about dying. The extinction of the Human race was just a risk he had overlooked. He knew he should be angry with himself for having those thoughts but right now Bill was an emotional wreck, just like Laura.

It was only today that Bill noticed the Fleet was getting back to what it was before the settlement. People were living again, trying to find a meaning to their life and he, their Admiral, had yet to catch up. He was not alone in this state. Saul and Kara were in a far worse shape. Seeing the two people he considered as family in this self-destruction path felt like a slap on his face. Bill finally woke up.

Right now he was contemplating how to mend things with Laura. The situation they were in was his fault. He had pushed her away when she needed him the most.

What was the best course of action? He decided the truth was the only sensible solution.

Ordering a Raptor to Colonial One, Bill dressed his best and finally headed to the President's office, as a new man.

* * *

Laura Roslin was reviewing some rationing estimates when Tory came in and announced her that the Admiral was here to see her. Shocked, Laura stood up and before she could even say a word, Bill appeared behind Torri, smiling. 

"I guess I will leave the two of you to have that long awaited discussion" said Torry sarcastically, a look full of meaning directed at Laura.

Laura frowned at that, Torri was more perceptive then she thought.

As Torri left, Laura quickly composed herself and greeted Bill formally, "Admiral"

Bill chuckled at that, "I owe you an apology Laura..."

As soon as he said her name she felt the tension that had built in her shoulders melt away and she sighed in relief.

"Bill. I thought you had totally disappeared from the surface of the universe," she said as she sat back in her chair, fearing her legs would give away.

Bill had the decency to look guilty. He stood there both hands behind his back, a sad smile on his face.

"I'm very sorry Laura. I was wallowing in self pity and guilt – you got caught in the middle. I was lucky enough to catch myself before I did something stupid."

"Like avoiding me for almost a frakking week?" snapped Laura angrily.

"I'm sorry about that," Bill answered, carefully avoiding her gaze.

Laura stood up and began pacing, "What was that all about? I thought you hated me or something? Bill, I haven't talked to you since the Ground breaking ceremony. And when I mean talk this is not to talk about the weather!"

Bill sighed, "I know Laura. I needed to come to terms with my mistakes. I also was a bit angry at you for choosing Zarek as a Vice-President after everything that happened."

"What mistakes are you talking about?" inquired Laura suspiciously, slowly coming to stand in front him.

"Leaving you on New Caprica, almost giving up, breaking my promise to you..." he started.

Laura crossed her arms and stopped his ranting. "You did what was the best to the survivors of the Human race."

"What's best usually has two distinct meanings when it comes to the brain or the heart..." offered Bill, willing to let her see it was his heart that suffered.

They both shared a little smile at that.

"Words spoken by a wise man," teased Laura.

"A foolish old man most likely." Joked Bill, earning a giggle from the President.

"So, are we going to be ok?" asked Laura for confirmation.

Bill stepped closer to her and took her hand in his, "We are good Laura. In fact I came here to give you a little gift."

_That_ picked Laura's curiosity at once and she tried to look what Bill was trying to hide once noticing he still had one hand behind his back.

Luckily, Bill had managed to hide the gift all this time and now offered it to Laura in a very dramatic way.

"Bill!' she exclaimed surprised

"Open it!"

She slowly opened the wrapper to reveal a leather bound book entitled 'A new beginning' by Armelia Sedoni, the famous writer who won the Caprican Award of Literature the year Laura got her teacher's degree.

"It's not a mystery but I thought it suited the occasion," Bill told her.

Laura caressed the book cover and smiled sweetly at Bill. She then tiptoed and kissed his right cheek.

"Thank you Bill."

Yes, this was a new beginning and they were starting just fine.

_**FIN!

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_So did you like that??_

_Thank you for reading. Please review!!_


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